Two areas in south Essex have been named as the hardest places to pass your driving test in the county.

Test centres in Tilbury and Basildon saw less than half of learners achieve a pass last year.

New figures released by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency show that only 53 per cent of learners throughout Essex passed their test between April 2020 and March 2021.

However, that was up from 47.1 per cent the year before.

The numbers of tests conducted in 2020/21 was also far below previous years because of the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown.

Only 7,798 tests were carried out in Essex in the past year - down from more than 33,000 in the 12 months before.

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The data shows 55.9 per cent of men in the county passed between April 2020 and March this year, compared to the 50.4 per cent of women who passed.

Tilbury was officially named as the hardest place to pass a driving test, with a pass rate of around 45 per cent.

Basildon was the second hardest, while Clacton was deemed the easiest, with an impressive pass rate of 63.9 per cent.

Here is how each driving test centre in Essex compares according to the latest data:

1. Clacton

Number of tests conducted - 266

Number of drivers who passed - 170

Pass rate – 63.9

2. Southend

Number of tests conducted – 1,201

Number of drivers who passed - 670

Pass rate – 55.8

3. Chelmsford

Number of tests conducted – 2,032

Number of drivers who passed – 1,132

Pass rate – 55.7

4. Colchester

Number of tests conducted – 1,274

Number of drivers who passed - 699

Pass rate – 54.9

5. Brentwood

Number of tests conducted - 709

Number of drivers who passed - 372

Pass rate – 52.5

6. Basildon

Number of tests conducted - 1,016

Number of drivers who passed - 502

Pass rate - 49.4

7. Tilbury

Number of tests conducted – 1,300

Number of drivers who passed - 586

Pass rate – 45.1